BEIJING, April 13 (Xinhua)-- The Golmud-Lhasa section
of the Qinghai-Tibet railway will start unmanned test runs from May 1 in
preparation for its trial operation on July 1.

Sources from China's Ministry of Railways said here
Thursday that the country will complete the construction of a number of key
railway projects with an investment of 34 billion yuan (about 4 billion U.S
dollars) in the second quarter this year, including the opening of the
Qinghai-Tibet railway.

Built on the "Roof of the World " and zigzagging
across 5,000-meter-high mountain ranges and a 550-km-long frozen belt, the
Qinghai-Tibet railway is the first railway in Tibet, aiming at building a closer
tie between the plateau with other parts of China.

According to the ministry, besides the Qinghai-Tibet
railway, construction of other major railways will also be accelerated during
the second quarter, including the Beijing-Tianjin inter-city track project.

The ministry also urges that the electrified
renovation of the Beijing-Shanghai railway should be completed before July 1.

Ministry statistics show that the country has
completed the construction of railway projects with an investment of 24 billion
yuan (about 3 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter this year, 2.8 times
more than that of the same period of last year. Enditem